Possessives within and beyond NP 205
- Ezafe-2 and ezafe-3: The size of the possessor
In the previous section we showed that the ezafe-2 and ezafe-3 nominals differ in how
much functional structure they require (PossP vs. DP) and consequently in the posi-
tion of the possessor (in [Spec,PossP] vs. in [Spec,DP]). In this section, we show that
the differences between ezafe-2 and ezafe-3 do not end there: not only do the possessors
in the two constructions appear in different positions but they are also themselves of
different functional “size”. Specifically, the lower possessor in ezafe-2 is a Small Nomi-
nal, no bigger than PossP, whereas the higher possessor in ezafe-3 is a full-fledged DP.
First, consider the possessors in ezafe-2. They cannot be pronouns or proper
names, which means that these possessors are smaller than a full-fledged DP (i.e.
Small Nominals; cf. Pereltsvaig 2006).
(26) a. min däftär{-em / -e }
I notebook{-1sg/-3 }
intended: ‘my notebook’
b. Marat däftär-e
Marat notebook-3
intended: ‘Marat’s notebook’
But while the possessors of ezafe-2 are not DPs, they are not bare nouns either: for
example, they can be modified by adjectives or attributivizer constructions.
(27) kırsak-lı xatın-nar kijem-e
belly-at tr woman-pl clothing-3
‘clothing for pregnant women’
Moreover, possessors in ezafe-2 can contain the plural suffix -lar and are not subject
to number-neutrality in the absence of the plural marker. Therefore, the possessor in
ezafe-2 is at least as large as the NumP.
(28) a. bala-lar čäčäk-lär-e
child-pl flower-pl-3
‘children’s flowers’
b. bala čäčäg-e
child flower-3
‘child’s flower’ (# ‘children’s flower’)
In fact, the possessor in ezafe-2 is even larger than a NumP, as it can be itself an ezafe-2
construction, which we have argued to be a PossP:
(29) [[bala-lar xastaxanä-se] tabib-ı]
child-pl hospital-3 doctor-3
‘a doctor in a children’s hospital’